Trump Campaign Asks Republicans Who Use His Name, Image in Fundraising to Give It a Cut

Former U.S. President Donald Trump leaves following the second day of his criminal trial at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York City on April 16, 2024. Mary Altaffer-Pool/Getty Images

A newly formed joint fundraising committee is asking for a share of funds raised using the name, image, or likeness of former President Donald Trump.

In a letter dated April 15 and signed by Susie Wiles and Chris LaCivita, co-campaign managers of Donald J. Trump For President, and addressed to “top Republican digital vendors,” a new committee called Trump National Committee JFC Inc. asks Republicans to “split a minimum of 5 percent” of all fundraising with Trump National Committee beginning on April 16.

Politico first published the letter.

It is unclear whether the numerous candidates running for a federal, state, or local office across the United States will choose to align themselves with President Trump and abide by the 5 percent contribution.

Representatives of the Trump campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Epoch Times.

“Any split that is higher than 5 percent will be seen favorably by the RNC and President Trump’s campaign and is routinely reported to the highest levels of leadership within both organizations,” the letter said.

According to the Federal Election Commission, the Trump National Committee was registered on March 20 and is a joint venture of the principal campaign committee, Donald J. Trump For President 2024 Inc., and the Republican National Committee.

The letter also asked Republican fundraising solicitations to avoid speaking on behalf of President Trump; questioning an individual’s support of President Trump or tying their support to a financial contribution; creating Trump-related memberships, clubs, or rewards that are not authorized by the campaign; using “matching” language to imply a donation will have a larger impact than its face value; adding a one-click donation feature mentioning President Trump; mentioning the Trump family without consent; and “impersonating President Trump or his campaign.”

“This includes mimicking the President’s logo, using subject lines that make it appear the sender is President Trump or his campaign, or egregiously copying the language or style from President Trump’s fundraising solicitations,” the letter said.

Specifically, this means not using phrases like, “President Trump needs you,” or “If you support President Trump, you'll contribute now.”

The letter included a warning that, “Any vendor whose clients ignore the guidelines mentioned above will be held responsible for their clients’ actions.”

“Repeated violations will result in the suspension of business relationships between the vendor and Trump National Committee JFC,” the letter said. “This includes list rental agreements.”

Moreover, the Trump National Committee is asking for a 1 percent split on so-called upsells.

“All committees that have been given the Trump Seal of Approval will be allowed to have one upsell that is personally signed by President Trump,” the letter said. “We’ve seen upsells signed by President Trump have the highest conversion rates and dollars per view.”

A list of the “approved candidates and committees” that can use a gold “official team Trump“ seal on their campaign materials is published on Donald J. Trump For President 2024’s website. A total of 54 committees so far are officially part of Team Trump.

“President Trump’s endorsement power is the most powerful force in American politics. His influence is election defining,” the website says. “When President Trump posts an endorsement on Truth Social, or a candidate onstage before tens of thousands of voters, America First patriots rally behind President Trump’s choice and deliver a decisive victory.”

The gold seal, according to the campaign committee, exists to “protect loyal donors from scammers.”

Fundraising Turns Campaign Rhetoric

Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump (R) and former First Lady Melania Trump (2nd R) arrive at the home of John Paulson (L) with his fiancee Alina de Almeida (2nd L) in Palm Beach, Fla., on April 6, 2024. Alon Skuy/Getty Images

The Trump campaign’s fundraising came into the political spotlight in 2024 as the campaign for his Democratic Party rival, President Joe Biden, celebrated its massive cash hauls.

In a round of FEC filings released on April 15, the Biden campaign disclosed that its main fundraising accounts held more than $187 million.

President Trump’s committees have not yet filed their April disclosures. They will likely do so on or before the monthly filing deadline of April 20.

However, a trio of Trump-adjacent committees did file reports on April 15. Collectively, the joint fundraising committees Trump Save America Joint Fundraising Committee and Trump 47 Committee Inc. said they had $26.4 million on hand. Another fund, the political action committee Make America Great Again PAC, said it had about $42,500 on hand.

The Trump campaign previously raised eyebrows when The Associated Press published an article that said Trump 47 would raise money to pay for President Trump’s legal defense before it sent anything to the allied RNC.

In March, the Trump 47 committee, according to its FEC filings, did not send any money to funds that have paid legal expenses. It did, however, send $10.3 million to the RNC and about $177,700 to President Trump’s central committee.

The Epoch Times previously reported that President Trump’s committees and allies paid more than $10 million in legal expenses through the first two months of the year.

Trump 47 recently hosted a fundraising event that took in more than $50.5 million.

Janice Hisle contributed to this report.